Electric-motor drive for locomotives and other railway-vehicles.



1 N. w. STORERQ ELECTRIC MOTOR DRIVE FOB LOCOMOTIVES AND OTHER RAILWAY VEHICLES.

APPLIOATIOH FILED OOTJ. 1908.

993,568. 7 Patented May 30,1911.

3 BHEETBBHEBT 1.

- WITNESSES! NVENTOR ATTORNEY N."W. STCRER. ELECTRIC MOTOR DRIVE FOR LOCOMOTIVES AND OTHER RAILWAY VEHICLES. APPLICATION FILED 0CT.'I. 1008 Patented May 30', 1911 3 BHEETBBHEET 2.

WITNESSES:

I |NVENTOR AITORNEY N. W. STORERV.

v ELECTRIC MOTOR DRIVE FOR LOCOMOTIVES AND OTHER RAILWAY VEHICLES.

APPLICATION rmm 0013.7. 1908.

993,568. Patented May 30,1911.

I 3 SHEETS-SHEET 8.

7 AiTORNEY quill or sleeve.

UNITED sra'rns PATENT OFFICE.

NORMAN W. STORER, 0F PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, TO WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC & MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF EAST PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

ELECTRIC-MOTOR DRIVE FOR LOCOMOTIVES AND OTHER RAILWAY-VEHICLES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 7, 1903. Serial No. 456,665.

Patented May To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NORMAN W. S'mium, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and'useful Improvement in Electric-Motor Drives for Locomotives and other Railway- Vehicles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to electric locomotives and other railwa vehicles and it has for its object to provit e an improved driving connection between the electric motors and the driving wheels of the vehicle.

In Patent No. 894,915, granted August 4,

1908, to the Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company upon an application filed by me, is illustrated and described a resilient connection between an electric 'motor and the truck wheels or drivers .of

an electric locomotive or car which is'especially adapted for use with very large motors. The motor shaft is provided with two pinions, on its respective ends, which mesh with gear wheels that are secured to a It has been found that, when gears are connected in multiple, as above indicated, they operate in an unsatisfactory manner and wear very rapidly unless the center linesof the shafts, which are operatively connected by the gears, are absolutely parallel and the gears are in alinement with each other.

It is obviously difiicult to effect and maintain the above specified .conclition exactly and my present invention is an improvement in resilient connections between the motor armature and the driving shaft by means of which the gears tend to mesh properly and to equalize the load upon the two sets included in the multiple arrangement, even though the shafts connected by them are not parallel. The torque exerted by the motor may therefore be equally applied to both driving wheels of the axle on which the motor is suspended, thereby'avoiding the strains which would otherwise be imposed upon the motor and upon the supporting truck when the driving gears 'are located at one end only of the motor shaft. Numerous other advantages are obtained by reason of truck and provided with my improved driv-- ing connection. Figs. 2 and 3 are detail views, on a larger scale, of the driving gear illustrated in Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, the structure hereillustrated comprises a truck axle 1 and driving wheels 2 and 3 secured-theretmand an electric driving motors} supported by and operatively connected to the driving wheels by means of a-resilient gear connection.

The motor 4 comprises a stationary frame 5 one end of which is rotatably mounted on a quill or sleeve 6, which surrounds the truck axle 1, and the opposite endof which is supported by a cross bar 7 which forms a portion of the truck frame, and arotating armature 8 secured to a shaft 9 which is mounted in bearings 10 that are. suitably housed in end portions 11 of'the stationary frame 5. Each end of the shit 9 is prowith one of a pair of gearwheels 13' that are mounted on and form parts of the quill vided with a driving pinion 12 which meshes or sleeve 6. The rim 14 of each of the gear wheels 13 is rotatably mounted on the inner or body portion 15 and is connected to it by a plurality of springs 16 which form a resilient connection between the two parts. The body portion 15 of the gear wheclis provided with cylindrical projections 17 which extend outwardly in a direction ar-l allel to the axis of the truck axle 1 and into a plurality of pockets 18 in the driving wheels, from-the'walls of which. they are separated by helical springs 19, having,

preferably, the form illustrated and de scribed in Patent No. 817,133, granted April 3, 1906, to the Westinghouse Electric &

Manufacturing Company, as assignee of' Robert Siegfried. It will be readily understood that the helical springs 19' are relaexerted by the motor shaft between the two cylindrical surfaces of th? blocks 24. The

u j 17, is also provided with an annular flange swheelis provided with a flange 26 which ed to a small angle. 0n the other hh nd, the

tively heavy and rigid by reason of the great weight which they support and the large forces which they transmit.

By constructing the gear wheel so as to include a relatively light resilient connection between its rim and its body and by limiting the motion permitted by positive stops, I have a voided the diificulties usually encountered when gears are arranged, in multiple, and I have efi'ectually equalized the torque driving pinions located at its ends], so that strains, which would otherwise occur in the motor shaft and in the quill, are obviated.

It will", of course, be understood that the quill structure is notessential to my inventionand that the hub member of the gear wheels may be secured directly to the truck axle,,if desired.

Specialreference may novi be had to Figs. 2 and?) of thedrawings, in which the resilient gear wheel is illustrated in detail. The body portion 15 of the gear wheel, hich is provided with the cylindrical proje tions 20 having poiilrets 21'. Each of the pockets 21 is/open atone side and is'cons'tricted at two 'fi'OlIlilS'QQ and 23, near its ends, the adja cent s irfaces of the constricted portiionsr being .nished to produce sockets for the r'eception of -sem'imylindrical blocks 24 having tangential projections 25 which extend. toward each other and into opposite ends of a helical spring 16 the axis of which is also tangential. The rim member .14 of the gear substantially covers the side openings in the pockets 21, the flange itself being rovided with projections 27 which project laterally into the pockets between their ends and the ad acent edges of the p ojections 27 are finished to fit the cylindrical surfaces of-the blocks 24 with which they are adapted to engage. The arrangement of parts is such" that there is only a relatively short distance between the outer-ends of the. projections 27 and the outer ends of the pockets 21, so that the relative rotation between the body member and the rim of the gear wheel is restrictinner' ends of the projections 27' are in close engagement'with the blocks 24 so Cthat the relative rotation referred to is oppos d, in both directions, by the helical springs. The rim member 14 of the gear wheel is fitted directly upon the outer cylindrical surface of the flange 20, and is hold in position by means of the flange 26 and also by means of an annular clamping ring 28 which isbolted to the body of the Wheel and overlaps an inwardly extending annular projection 29 with which the flange 26 is provided. The 16 preferably located at equal intervals about the circumference of the A J1: In an electreif ceases flange 20 and their number and strength may be varied to suit the conditions of service for which the driving connection is intended. The end thrust of the motor frame is taken up, in the usual manner, by means of springs 30 which are located in the hollow ends of the" cylindrical projections 17 that form a.

part of the main drivin connection between the motor and the whee s.

It is a well known fact that material variations in torque are effected by the application of single phase alternatin current energy of low frequency to the driving motors of an electric vehlcle, and my present resilient connection in the driving gear is specially well adapted to absorb these variations, as well as to equalize the load between the two ends of the motor and to improve the operation and prolong the life of thebe efgear, as above indicated.

Since structural modifications mag fected within the spirit and scope o my invention, I desire that only such limitations shall be imposed as are indicated in the appended claims,

If claim as my 1nvent1on:

vehicle, the combination fivith a truck axl a pair of driving wheels secured thereto, and a motion moun ed adjacent to the axle and resiliently connected to the wheels at both ends, of relatively flexible means for equalizing the torque at t'he two ends of the axle.

2. In an electric vehicle, the combination with a. truck axle, a pair of driving wheels secured thereto, and a motor mounted adjacent to the axle and. resiliently" connected 'to the wheels at both ends, of relatively flexible springs'introduced into the driving gears for equalizingthe torque at the two ends of the axle.

8. In an electric vehicle, the combination with a truck axle, a pair of driving wheels secured lthereto, a gear wheel resiliently connected to each drivin wheel and a motor mounted adjacent to t e axle and provided with a pair of pinions to mesh with the gear heels, of a resilient connection between the ody and the rim of each gear wheel for equalizing the load between the two ends of the motor shaft.

4. In an electric vehicle, the combination with a truck axle, a pair of driving wheels secured thereto, and a motor mounted tidjacent to the axle, of a plurality of sets of motor and the axle, and relhtively sensitive '120 yielding driving connections between the means for equalizing the load between the sets of connections.

5. The combination with a pair of sub stantially parallel shafts, of a plurality of operative connections between The shafts, each comprising a resilient gear wheel the rim of which is permitted a limited rotative adjustment relatlve to the hub, and'a yielding connection between the gear wheel and In testimony whereof, I have hereunto one of the shafts.

subscribed my name this 30th day of Sept, 10 f6. The cclgmbinfation with a pair of shafts, 1908. 0 a lura it o ear connections between the shafts, eazh em odying means for equal- NORMAN R izing the load between them, and a yielding Witnesses: means between one member of each gear con- G. M. EATON, nection and one of the shafts.

BIRNEY HINES. 

